Expert: Young dry up in labor force

BEIJING - China's available labor force of those 35 years old and under has dried up, and one economist says low salaries are to blame.

Zhang Zheng, an expert in rural economy at Peking University's Guanghua School of Management, told China Business News that his survey showed the labor force of this "golden age group", which cities need becasue of its higher work efficiency, has been exhausted in rural areas.

He cited figures saying that among the country's total rural workforce - which stood at 550 million in 2009 - only 200 million were at or below 35. At the same time, industries employed some 230 million farmers-turned workers.